Station or street indicator



(No ModeL') 4 Sheets-Sheet 2. W. S. MALLABD. STATION 0R STREETINDICATOR.

Patented Mar. 3

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ATTOIZNE Y8 (No Model.) MALLARDI .4 Sheets-Sheet 4. STATIONOR STREETINDICATOR.

No. 447,617. Patented Mar. 3, 1891.

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a J J zzy G 0 J U. z 1 a 7V 0 a wwk a a J I Z fi ATENT XVILLIAM S. MALLARD, OF DARIEN, GEORGIA.

STATION OR STREET INDICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 447,617, dated March 3,1891.

Application filed March 28, 1890. Serial No. 345,719- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM S. MALLARD, residing at Darien, in thecounty of McIntosh and State of Georgia, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Station or Street Indicators, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention is in the nature of an indicating device more especiallyadapted for use on steam or street railway cars, designed to be locatedin convenient reach of the conductor or brakeman; and it has for itsobject to provide an indicator which will be easy to manipulate, simplein construction, positive in desired operation, and wherein the samemeans are employed to operate a series of indicator-signs successivelyin rotation in case a car is moving in one direction, and to operatesaid signs successively in a reverse direction in case the car travelsin the opposite direction.

To this end my invention consists in providing a suitably-constructedcasing formed with two compartments adapted to receive a series ofindicator-plates, one of such compartments arranged at the rear of asightopening formed in the front of the case, said compartment alwayscarrying the particular indicator-plate in sight,means being employed toautomatically hold such plate directly under the sight-opening in thecasing.

It also consists in providing suitable means arranged to move saidslides successively from one compartment to the other, and also toprovide means. whereby the indicating shifting mechanism can be set tooperate said slides in reverse direction.

Finally, my invention consists in the novel arrangement and combinationof the parts hereinafter described in the specification, an d thenpointed out in the claims, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, in W'hlClL-r Figure 1 is a top or face view of my improvedindicator. Fig. 2 is a similar view with the front shown thrown back.Fig. 3 is a face view with a portion of the front broken away. Fig. 4 isa vertical section on the line at 4, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a similar viewwith the parts adjusted to operate in a reverse direction. Fig. 6 is aview illustrating the parts in the act of moving one of the plates fromthe upper to the lower compartment. Fig. 7 is a detail view of therack-bar; Fig. 8 is a similar view of one of the cams for shifting thepivoted finger-bars. Fig. 9 is a detail view of the spring-pawl and itsoperatingcam, and Fig. 10 illustrates one of the indicator-plates.

Referring to the accompanying drawings,

A indicates the casin g provided with a hinged front a, formed with asight-opening B, beneath which the desired indicator slide or plate willalways appear in view. The rear portion of the casing is formed with twolongiwall 0, arranged between said pockets, has

its upper end arranged to stop a short distance from the rear of thefront wall a, whereby a space 0 is provided of a size sufficient toadmit of the indicator-slides being passed one at a time from one pocketto the other.

By reference to Fig. i of the drawings it will be seen that I arrangespring-actuated followers D D in the pockets C C, respectively, suchfollowers serving to press the indicator-slides E against the frontwall, for a purpose hereinafter explained.

In the construction shown it will be seen that I form each of theindicator-slides with slightly-thickened ends cc and form the edges ofsuch slides slightly beveled, as shown, the 8 5 object of thisconstruction being to decrease the frictional surface of such slidesagainst the front wall of the casing as they are carried from one pocketto the other, and at the same time holding the faces of such slides, oo

upon which the sign or characteris placed, from contact with the saidfront and thereby prevent the said sign being rubbed off.

In brackets F F, projected inward from the hinged front, I journal ashaft G, upon the 5 opposite ends of which are secured cogwheels 1-1 H,one of such wheels formed with a grooved pulley I on one face, to whichis connected one end of an operating cord or chain, the free end h ofwhich extends through 1 00 an aperture b in the lower end of the casingto within ccnvenlent reach of the operator,

said wheels being so arranged that when the cord his pulled downwardthey will serve to operate the devices which shift the indicatorplatesfrom one compartment to the other.

In the construction shown I provide rackbars J J, arranged to slide insuitable ways formed on the inner face of the front a, said barsengaging the teeth of the wheels II II, as most clearly shown in Fig. 4of the drawings, and being normally held with their ends jj againststop-plates j j secured near the lower end of the front, as shown, bymeans of a convolute spring K, secured to the shaft and the front A.

Each of the bars J is formed with a parallel member J, disposed tooperate just inside of the end walls of the compartments 0 C, an d itsupper end formed with an inwardly-projecting finger j j, which isarranged to normally project over the upper edge of suchindicator-plate, which is held under the sight-opening B.

Upon the inner face of each of the members J J are arranged finger-armsL L, pivoted at the inner ends at Z to the members J J, their free endsbeing formed with outwardly-projecting lugs Z Z, arranged to normallyproject over the lower edge of such indicator-plate as may be held underthe sightopening, said free ends being extended beyond said lugs, as atZ Z, and arranged to engage cams M, in a manner and for the purposepresently described.

N N denote spring-actuated locking-pawls arranged to extend upward fromthe upper edge of the sight-openingover the upper compartment C, thelower ends of such pawls being provided with hooks n-n, which projectover the partition-wall c and serve to hold the indicator-slides whenshifted from the lower to the upper compartment from being pulled backas the bars JJ' J slide back to their normal position.

So far as described the construction of the several parts is such as tocause the several indicator-slides to be shifted from the lowermostpocket C to the upper pocket C, the manner of operating such parts toaccomplish this result being as follows: Assuming that Savannah is to bethe starting-point, the several plates indicating the stations arearranged in the pocket 0 with Savannah as the outer plate. 7 Now,supposing Darien to be the next stoppingstation, such place is indicatedon the plate underthe Savannah. The conductor or brakeman at the propertime pulls upon the cord 71, which causes the wheels H H and the shaftto revolve and causes the rack-bars J to move upward. The lugs Z Z ofthe finger-arms L L engaging the lower edge of outermost indicator-platewill carry the same up away from the opening (the slide in its movementserving to depress the spring-controlled pawlsN N) until it rests overthe spring-actuated follower in the pocket C, its upper edge engagingthe inclined face 0 of cams 0, whereby said edge is depressed to a pointbelow the inner faces of the lugs j. The pawls N then spring back inadvance of the lower edge of the said moved slide, allowing the nextslide, Darien, in the pocket 0 to be pushed up under the sightopening.lull upon the operating-cord having now been released, the spring K willcause the parts to move in a reverse direction the lugs on the arms Jwill press the said plate down in its pocket and pass over the same, therear end of such lug being of such length, however, as to remain incontact with the lower outer face of said plate.

To provide a simple means for feeding the slides in reverse direction, Iarrange the cams M, journaled upon short stud-axles projected inwardfrom the front wall and (adapted for a quarter-revolution on theiraxles) with camgrooves m, form ed diagonally, as most clearly shown inFig. 8 of the drawings, by reference to which it will be seen that whenthe cams are turned in the position shown in full lines the ends Z ofthe arms L will be in the upper part of the groove and the said armsadjusted to operate the plates, as before described, and by turning thecams into the position shown in dotted lines the ends Z will be in theinner portion of the groove, and thereby pull the said arms inward outof line with the outer face of the uppermost indicator-plates.

O 0 denote camlevers adapted to be turned into engagement with the rearends of the arms N N and pull their forward ends out of the path of themovement of the indicatorplates, said cams being provided with inclinedfaces 0 0 which project over the upper portion of the pocket (3' andserve to depress the upper ends of the slides when pushed in place, asbefore described. By this construction it will be seen that when thecams M M and O 0 have been adjusted to pull the arms L and N out ofoperative position and it is desired to feed the indicators in a reversedirection, the operator pulls upon the cord 71 which causes the bars J Jto pass over the outer plate in the pocket 0 until its lug j passesbeyond the upper edge of said plate, and the cam 0 having been turned soits incline 0 is out of contact with said plate permits the upper edgeof such plate to sprin up in advance of the lugsj Now as the pull uponthe cord is released the bars J in their reverse motion will engage saidplate and pull it back over the pocket C, the beveled edges of theplates serving to cause the moving plates to squeeze between thepreviously-moved indicator-plate or the follower D and the front.

To form a convenient means whereby the several cams M and O can beadjusted at one time, I provide the longitudinal shafts P I and atransverse shaft Q, journaled in bearings on the inner side of thefront, such shafts geared with each other, as shown, the transverseshaft Q being formed with an extension q, having a squared end, such endbeing disposed just inside of an aperture 11, formed &47,617

in the lower wall of the casing, through which a key can be passed toengage said end and turn the shafts in the directions indicated by theseveral arrows. The longitudinal shafts are formed with worm-threads pp, which engage worm-wheels S T, formed on the cams M and 0,respectively, whereby when desired all the cams can be simultaneouslyadjusted by means of the key 10, the several bevelgears,wor1n-threads,and the worm-wheels being disposed as most clearly shown in Fig. '2,whereby the several cams will be turned to the required positions.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings,the advantages of my improvements will readily appear. It will be seenthat the same is exceedingly simple in construction, and can bemanufactured at a small cost.

In the practical application of my improvements I arrange a suitablegong within the casing, which is rung at each change of the slides.

lVhile I describe my invention as being especially adapted for railwayand street cars it is manifest that it is applicable for use as anindicator for depots to indicate the arrival and departure of trains,the. It is also manifest that, instead of employing the means shown foroperating the shaft, a suitable electric motor may be employed tooperate the devices.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is

1. A street or station indicator consisting of a casing formed with asight-opening and two pockets arranged one above the other, one to therear of said sight-opening, a series of automatical outwardly-pressedindicatorplates adapted to be held in said pockets, shifting devicesarranged within the casing adapted to move each of the indicator-platesout of one of the pockets into the other in one direction of movementand back into the first pocket in the reverse direction of movement, anoperating-shaft extended without the casing, and a train of gearingintermediate said shaft and the shifting devices, whereby said devicescan at any time be set for reverse movements of the indicator-slides,substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In a street or railway indicator, the combination, with a casingformed with a sightopening, pockets arranged one above the other to therear of the sight-opening, a series of outwardly spring-pressedindicator-plates adapted to be held in said pockets, of shiftingdevices. arranged within the casing, a spring-actuated rock-shaftmounted within said casing and connected with the shifting devices, anoperating cord or handle extended without the casing, said shaft andshifting devices adapted to move the slides from the lower to the upperpocket when the said cord is pulled downward by hand and from the upperto the lower compartment by the automatic reverse movement of the shaft,and means for setting the said devices for reverse movement at any pointbetween the first and last indicator-plate, substantially as and for thepurpose described.

3. In an indicator device for the purpose described, the combination ofthe casing provided with a sight-opening, two pockets C 0', arranged oneabove the other and one to the rear of said sight-opening, a series ofoutwardly springpressed indicator slides held in said pockets, shiftingdevices held within the casing, arranged to move said slidessuccessively from the lower to the upper pocketon their forwardmovement, and a handoperated shaft extended without the casing andconnected to the shifting devices, adapted to set said devices at anypointintermediate the first and last slides (when on their backwardmovement) will operate the said slides in a reverse direction,substantially as and for the purpose described.

l. An indicator for the purposes described, comprising a box formed witha sight-openin g, pockets C 0, arranged therein, one above the other andone to the rear of the sight-opening, a series of outwardlyspring-pressed indicator-slides held in said pockets, whereby the outerslide is normally projected beyond said pockets, a rock-shaft journaledin the casing, means for rocking said shaft byhand in one direction ofmovement, a spring for operating it in reverse direction, rack-bars J J,operated by the rock-shaft formed with arms J J, the fingers L L,)ivoted to said arms J, adapted to engage the indicator-slides and movesame from the lower to the upper compartment, and means for holding saidslides from reverse movement, substantially as and or the purposedescribed.

5. The combination of the casing provided with a sight-opening andpockets 0 C, arranged one to the rear of said opening, indicator-slidesheld in said pocket-s, means for pressing said slides outward, theoutermost slide normally disposed beyond the outer edge of the pocketsof the reciprocating shifting devices held within the casing, saiddevices consisting of a rock-shaft G, formed with a gear-wheel IT, saidshaft spring-actuated in one direction of movement, the rack-bars J,connected with said gears H, the arms J J, formed thereon, provided withenlargements 7' the finger-bars L, pivoted to said arms J, formed withprojections Z, the spring-actuated retaiuing-pawls N for holding theslides from reverse movement, and means for setting said shiftingdevices for reverse movements, substantially as and for the purposedescribed.

6. In an indicator substantially as described, the combination, with thepockets 0 O, the spring-actuated followers therein, and theindicator-slides held thereon,of the reciprocating rack-bars J J, formedwith lateral members J J, provided with lugs f, projected normally overthe upper pocket, the fingerbars L L, pivoted to the arms J J, formedwith lngsl, projected normally over the lower edge of the lower set ofslides the spring actuated holding-pawls N, projected normally over thelower edge of the upper pocket and adapted to be automatically pushedout of the path of the movement by the moving indicator-plate, and therock-s11aft connected with the rack-bars adapted to be rocked in onedirection by hand and in the opposite direction by the spring K,substantially as and for the purpose described.

7. The combination of the casing,t11e pocketsG 0', disposed therein, aseries of independent indicator-slides held in said pockets and adaptedto be automatically held against the front wall of said casing, therack-bars .T, the members J, secured thereto, provided with lugs 7' thepivoted fingers L, formed with lugs Z and projecting ends Z thespringpawls N, arranged as shown, the rotatable cams M, formed each witha diagonally-disposed groove in its periphery, adapted to receive theends Z of arms L, and the cams 0, formed with inclined faces adaptedwhen turned in one of their positions to project over the upper pocketand depress the upper end of the plates when fed into such pocket, saidcams 0 adapted when turned into their other position to pull the pawlsNont of operative position, and means for operating; the said cams,

substantially as shown and described.

\VILLIAM S. MALLARD.

ime-sees:

FRED G. DIETERICH, SOLON U. KnnoN.

